Breeding Setup (housing)

[Anonymous]

Currently, I only have laying hens (pullets, at this point) which I do not intend to use for breeding.  But I want to get a couple of different breeds, breed them true, develop them the way I want them, and then use them to create F1 speckled olive egger hybrids to sell as laying hens.  At this time, we just have a 5×8 coop with a 10’x8′ run which we paid a local builder a HEFTY price to build as secure and predator-proof as possible.  We are in Iowa where we get very cold and snowy winters (teens to 20s below zero F).  There’s no way I’m going to convince my husband to put down another $3000-$5000 each on three or so more coop/run setups.  What do I really need, before I even go down this road of getting breeding chickens?  We do have a barn, but it’s not remotely predator-proof, was built 40-some years ago, and it just isn’t very “tight.”  There are a lot of predators here, coyotes, hawks, raccoons being just about everywhere.  I would think (if there was enough space) I could put breeding hens in with the laying flock for overwintering, but what am I supposed to do with multiple roosters over winter?  Would chicken tractor-type setups work for spring/summer?

[Kenny Troiano]

Hey Stacy,
they do need to be predator proof
but for breeding, You just need a way to separate the breeders.
If you plan to use a rotational program, you can just have 3 pens for 3 separate lines.
the more pens you have, the better. But there are ways to get around that. The rotational program is a good one.
We can do a coaching call, and talk about that to see if it’s good for you.
I will also be including that program in the Founders Program soon.
Hope that helps,
Kenny Troiano

[Author]

Posts